After months of waiting, we finally got to hear from the Green Bay Packers’ two newest coordinators. Jonathan Gannon, most recently the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, will lead the defense. Meanwhile, former New England Patriots special teams coordinator Cam Achord will lead Green Bay’s third phase.
Being a special teams coordinator in Green Bay means immediately inheriting a lot of attention. The Packers used all of their special teams mojo on Desmond Howard‘s return TD in Super Bowl XXXI and have been cursed ever since. It’s the real-world equivalent of Hogwarts’ Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, except real, meaningful, and created by more sympathetic people.
Considering the Packers lost another playoff game just months ago, where special teams blunders were on full display, Packers fans are hoping that, this time, the right person has the job and that the team is devoted to making his success possible.
All of this to say that Achord has a Herculean effort ahead of him to stabilize special teams and earn some trust with the fanbase. All of those years of concern don’t evaporate immediately. Still, what did our first look at Cam Achord, special teams coordinator for the Green Bay Packers, tell us?
Success is rarely linear, and that’s true of Achord’s career. Shortly after his ascension to the top job in New England, he immediately fielded a top-of-the-league special teams unit. However, the subsequent years weren’t as flashy, though still much better than anything Green Bay fielded in that time. When Bill Belichick left, his replacement, Jerod Mayo, didn’t maintain Achord’s services.
For the past two seasons, Achord was the Giants’ assistant special teams coordinator. Achord always eyed a return to the coordinator job, but wanted to make sure it was with the right spot. Green Bay is rarely viewed as that spot, but Achord liked the foundation.
“There was an opportunity to improve and get better here,” he said. “There are pieces in place.”
Achord particularly praised punter Daniel Whelan, who had his best season in 2025. But he went further and said that the kicking game has what it needs to be successful.
That might seem off, considering the kicking game was one of the biggest concerns in 2025. A blocked kick against the Cleveland Browns, a returned extra point against the Dallas Cowboys, and somewhere between three and one billion missed kicks against the Chicago Bears in the Wild Card are some of the lowlights of last season.
However, Achord believes the pieces are there for success. That suggests former coordinator Rich Bisaccia had most of the right pieces in place, but perhaps they weren’t used correctly. After seeing the Packers shift how they approached field-goal protection following the Cleveland blunder, there’s a fair case that’s true.
Whether those issues were from Bisaccia himself or from Matt LaFleur, LaFleur appears more willing to let Achord do his thing.
“I think Matt understands that the kicking game,” said Achord. “He’s been great for me already.”
Of course, it helps that the Packers have a new kicker, one scouted by Achord himself. There will be a battle between Brandon McManus and 2026 draft pick Trey Smack.
Drafting Smack was a team effort, but Achord mentioned what he told Brian Gutekunst he liked about Smack’s game.
“Straight ball, accuracy,” Achord said on Monday. “His ball doesn’t move a lot. For me, I don’t need a guy, and I’ve been blessed to coach a lot of guys that are really good. I don’t need a guy that can kick it 65 yards, personally. I want the guy that’s going to put it through consistently from 58, 55.”
Cam Achord knows what it takes to be a successful kicker and believes Smack has those traits. He balanced up to four kickers during his time in New England, so he’s not worried about spreading the reps around.
The kicking game is more than the kicker, of course. Achord believes Green Bay has the core it needs, but that core needs to be better than it was last season. How will he make sure that’s true?
Fundamentals. Often a buzzword, there’s a legitimate case that this was the primary issue in Green Bay, considering the high number of penalties through Bisaccia’s reign.
“When we go out to the field, we’re going to start there,” Achord said. “We’re not going to get into a bunch of scheme. We’ve got to do the little things right because then you’ve laid the foundation. We’re going to lay a foundation, and then we’ll start maximizing that. It’s putting the guys in situations to be successful.”
Ultimately, Achord believes his success as a coach stems from his junior college coaching days, when he balanced multiple duties due to smaller staff sizes.
“I think some of the best coaches are people that coached small-college ball, whether that’s Division II, Division III, junior college,” he said. “Because you have to wear a lot of hats. It makes you put the stuff that’s really important in a bucket, and let’s take care of that.”
The recruiting experience also goes a long way toward scouting and putting players in positions to succeed. With smaller-school prospects, playing special teams roles can be the difference in getting drafted, meaning he knows more about what to look for.
Ultimately, Cam Achord believes Green Bay has the personnel to succeed at special teams. He believes his experience and attention to detail are the X factor toward getting that personnel to play their best football.
A new chosen kicker and Achord’s long success with returners mean Green Bay has a viable path to improving two of its most glaring weaknesses. Achord clearly has a plan in place and is ready to attack the role. Is he the man to turn Green Bay’s fortune around? Hopefully, the answer to that question is at least something pleasant to watch.
